BGBS 009: Ari Weinzweig | Zingerman’s | Manifesting a Shared Vision of Anarchy, Philosophy, Beliefs, Pastrami, and Social Good

As a child, Ari wasn’t thinking about food and business; he was dealing with his parents’ divorce and remarriages

Moved from Chicago to Ann Arbor to attend the University of Michigan and study Russian history focused on the anarchists

Started as a dishwasher and almost 40 years later is still working with some of the same people who have the same vision and have come to love each other

Make choices about partnerships, problems, and positives; communicate constructively to resolve conflict

Learning that most of the world does not function through love and understanding, despite what you were told or shown as a child

Beliefs are not genetic, but learned; all of us have beliefs and take action based on them; when you change what you believe, you see things differently

Break Beliefs: Acknowledge that an issue exists, identify your belief and where it came from, and decide whether you want to change it or not

Studied anarchy because of his fascination with real people’s stories regarding freedom and free thinking – a positive belief in human beings

Understand imperfection is normal and natural; minimize problems and outweigh them through positivity

People thought he was going to fail when he opened the business, which is true of any meaningful work; such fear and concern has never left him

Customers want to feel good and be treated well, so Zingerman’s makes food fun and creates an experience by knowing its strengths and weaknesses

Enjoy life, work hard, and share what you have with those who don’t

Free Choice: Choosing not to go is different than not being allowed to go